From Deployed to Employed: The Battle to Find a Job in the Civilian World After Serving the Nation

Since 9/11 there have been more than 2 million men and women who have served and defended our nation in Iraq and Afghanistan. These brave warriors volunteered to do a job knowing they would be put in harm's way. You would think that as they come home and look to re-establish themselves into the civilian world that employers would be lining up to hire them, and many are, but there is still a 12 percent unemployment rate for veterans who have served in Iraq and Afghanistan.

Luckily, there are some tremendous efforts underway to address the problem, and this is one that all Americans seem to be willing to band together and address. Just this week, the First Lady and Dr. Jill Biden hosted guests at the White House to celebrate the one year anniversary of the Joining Forces Initiative they launched last year. Since the program started, there have been more than 50,000 veterans and military spouses who have found jobs with a great group of supporting companies.

In March, Milicruit, MOAA, DirectEmployers Association and 20 leading employers started the 10,000 Jobs for Veterans and Military Spouses Challenge. As the name implies, the goal is to find at least 10,000 jobs for the veterans and their spouses by the end of 2013. There have already been more than 19,00 that have found jobs with the employers who are signed on for the challenge. As part of this challenge, Milicruit and MOAA will now host nationwide virtual career fairs on a monthly basis starting in May, and will also host a dedicated virtual career fair for military spouses on May 7.

The Department of Defense has launched an outstanding program Hero 2 Hired that allows employers to post their jobs for free, and also allows the service member to search for jobs with all the employers by location, job title, and even their military occupation code or specialty MOS/MOC.

There is no shortage of programs to tackle this problem, but it is up to all of us in the private and public sector to reach out to the military community and let them know that we are grateful for their service, and more importantly, we recognize and value all the skills, training, and education they bring to any organization.

I have said many times before, that if the Fortune 1,000 simply agreed to hire 10 veterans this year, the unemployment rate for veterans would virtually disappear. Hiring veterans and military spouses is not only the right and morale thing to do, but it is a great business decision.

They have done their part for all of us, and now it is our turn to step up and let them know that we are here for them. Every employer we speak with tells us they would welcome more veterans in their workforce, but I encourage you to seek them out. Take a few minutes and evaluate the person, not just the resume. These men and women are exactly what make this country great, and they would make a fine addition to your team.

 

 

 

Comments

[MrTaban9]

07:33 AM on 04/13/2012

These brave warriors volunteered to do a job knowing they would be put in harm's way.

Yes they did, same as I did when I went to Nam in the 60s. The big difference I see today is that when I came back home in May of 67 the News Papers were filled with EMPLOYMENT AGENCIES offering tens of thousands of jobs, the news papers back then were overflowing with employment ads.

I was discharged on May 2nd 67 after 5 full yrs of active duty and three overseas tours, 2 in Korea B4 Nam. On May 4th I went to downtown Manhattan NY to an Employment Agency, found a job working for an Airline (Air France), on May 6th I was out at what is now Kennedy Airport WORKING FOR A BIG COMPANY, but that was THEN, this is NOW! :-( and NOW doesn't look to inviting for these poor Vets, unfortunately, :-(.

[robadeaux]

02:46 AM on 04/13/2012

These people have certainly served their masters, but not the citizens of the United States.
They have nothing to do with defending the freedom of the US. This is pure mythology... that it helps fools like you to sleep at night, doesn't really cut it. You have Karma and the universe (your god, or however you want to put it) to answer to.

[Trydecency]

11:27 PM on 04/12/2012

Excuse me, but U.S. military personnel who have were assigned to in Iraq and Afghanistan were not "defending" America, and everyone with an ounce of character will be willing to admit that. What they have been doing is participating in a foolish and profit-driven occupation of other countries, mandated by policies that are both cynical and politically self-serving. Even many former military officers admit this now, and there's no point in continuing to boot-lick the military-industrial complex. Also, giving special privileges and launching special hiring programs for recent veterans is an insult to the millions of other Americans who are out of work and deserve the same efforts. Remember: Current military personnel are paid employees. Nobody forced them to sign up, and they were paid relatively well compared to military personnel of decades ago. The corporate media's continual coddling of these folks is just more cynical pandering for commercial reasons, and contributes to the rapid drift toward fascism now apparent in America. All of America's unemployed need hiring programs, not just those who were paid well to carry out our imperialist wars.

[positiveki]

01:02 AM on 04/15/2012

Oh, that's right...they were on a luxury cruise.

If potential threats (i.e., Bin Laden) that could transfer both personnel and technology to the states isn't enough...if the destruction of two business towers with thousands (much less the firefighters and police also killed)...then obviously your view is so distorted reasoning will not work with you.